Amanda Marcotte had a piece over on Pandagon recently in which she basically argued that as a culture we haven't really accepted the idea that women have things they get passionate about other than pleasing men and/or raising families. I'm starting to think she's more right than I initially realized. (I just keep thinking that if people stopped to think this through, they'd realize how silly this is - I mean, there's a lot of effort involved in being a fan of something. Surely if a girl just wants to look at dreamy boys, there are easier ways?)
As far as I can tell, "middle aged ladies" get more benefit of the doubt about the genuineness of their enthusiasm. Unless said enthusiasm is for something that only "young people" are supposed to like (like Twilight or boy bands), in which case they're presumed to be in denial about their age. However that benefit of the doubt doesn't necessarily extend to a presumption of knowledge or competence.
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rosecarmine
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Date: 2013-02-21 11:25 pm (UTC)As far as I can tell, "middle aged ladies" get more benefit of the doubt about the genuineness of their enthusiasm. Unless said enthusiasm is for something that only "young people" are supposed to like (like Twilight or boy bands), in which case they're presumed to be in denial about their age. However that benefit of the doubt doesn't necessarily extend to a presumption of knowledge or competence.